C C¹ 7:1-9. Confederacy (Syria and Israel).(Particular)"It shall not stand"(v.7)
D¹ 7:10 - 8:8. Divine Interposition (7,10). THE VIRGIN'S SON.
C² 8:9,10. Confederacy. (General). "It shall be brought to nothing."
D² 8:11 - 9:7. Divine Interposition. IMMANUEL.
C³ 9:8 - 10:32. Confederacy. (Yahaveh's). Particular. "I will punish."
D³ 10:33 - 12:6. Divine Interposition. THE SON OF DAVID.631-630 B.C.
Isaiah 7)
1 And it came to pass in the days of (see Gen.14:1) Ahaz (= possessor. For the history explaining this prophecy see 2 Kings 15:37-16:5) the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Syria (= firm. See 2 Kings 16:5-9), and Pekah (= open-eyed. His was the last prosperous reign in Israel. It began in the last year of Uziah, king of Judah.) the son of Remaliah (repeated for emphasis in vv.1,4,5,9. A murderer [2 Kings 15:25]), king of Israel, went up toward Jerusalem to war against it, but could not prevail against it (cp. 2 Kings 16:5).
2 And it was told the house of David (not to Ahaz only, but to the house which had received the promise of Yehovah's protection [2 Sam. 7), saying, “Syria is confederate with Ephraim” (the leading tribe, put by fig., for the rest of the 10 tribes. Sometimes called "Samaria" [1 Kings 16:24]). And his heart (i.e. Ahaz) was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the wood are moved with the wind (Heb. ruâch).
3 Then said the Lord to Isaiah, “Go forth now to meet Ahaz, you, and Shear-jashub your son (= the remnant shall return), at the end of the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field;
4 And say to him, ‘Take heed, and be quiet; fear not, neither be fainthearted because of the two tails of these smoking firebrands (cp. Amos 4:11. Zech. 3:2. Not like the stump of Judah [6:13]), consisting of the fierce anger of Rezin with Syria, and of the son of Remaliah.
5 Because Syria, Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah, have taken evil counsel against thee, saying,
6 ‘Let us go up against Judah, and terrify it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal’ (i.e. Rezin, king of Syria):
7 Thus says the Lord GOD, ‘It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.
8 For through the head of Syria is Damascus (which is soon to be spoiled), and the head of Damascus is Rezin (a firebrand soon to be quenched. He was the last independent of Syria); yet within sixty-five years shall Ephraim be broken (to be made up thus: Ahaz 14 + Hezekiah 29 + Manasseh 22 = 65 [13 x 5]. Fulfilled in 567-6 B.C.), shall no more be a people (but Judah shall return [6:13]).
9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son. If you all will not believe, know that you all shall not be established.’ ’ ” (note the fig., to emphasis and attract attention to the importance of the sentence. May be Englished thus: "If you all will not trust, you all shall not be trusted". Or, have no belief...find no relief; or, will not understand...shall not surely stand; or, no confiding...no abiding. Verse 17 shows that Ahaz did not trust. See "shall call" [v.14])
D¹ E 7:10-17. The Son.
F 7:18-25. Assyrian Invasion.
E 8:1-4. The Son.
F 8:5-8. Assyrian Invasion.
E G 10,11. The Sign offered.
H 12. Ahaz. Refusal of Sign.
G 13-16. The Sign given.
H 17. Ahaz. Prophecy concerning him.
10 Moreover (it seems as though Isaiah wanted to see what Ahaz would say to v.9) the Lord spoke added again to Ahaz (this identifies the words with Yahaveh Himself, and not merely with Isaiah. It shows the vast importance of the coming prophecy), saying,
11 “Ask you a sign of the Lord God (Heb. ’õth, a present visible token or pledge, as in Gen.1:14. Ex.4:8,9; 12:13; and especially 8:18. Cp. Hezekiah's sign [38:7]); ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.” (Ahaz was not limited, and therefore without excuse)
12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask (he had already made up his mind to appeal to Assyria, and had probably sent messengers Tiglath-Pilesar [2 Kings 16:7. 2 Chron. 28:16]. His self-hardening is masked by his apparently pious words), neither will I tempt the Lord Himself.”
13 And he (i.e. Yahaveh by the prophet; thus identifying Himself with this important prophecy) said, “Hear you all now, O house of David; Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you all weary my Elohim also?
14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a damsel (Heb. the virgin: i.e. some definite well-known damsel, whose identity was then unmistakable, though unknown to us. See Matt. 1:21-23. Luke 1:31. The Hebrew for virgin [in our technical sense] is bethulah, and occ. 50 times. Its first occ. is Gen. 24:16, where, compared with v.43, it shows that while every Bethulah is indeed an Almah, yet not every Almah is a Bethulah. The prophecy does not lose its Messianic character, for Mary, in whom it was fulfilled, is designated by the same holy inspiring Spirit as "parthenos" [not gune]. As a sign to Ahaz this damsel was almah. As a sign, when the prophecy was fulfilled [or filled full], it was Mary, the parthenos or virgin) is pregnant and bears a son (the two words occur together only here, Gen. 16:11, and Judg. 13:5,7; and v.12 shows that birth was imminent. Perhaps the Almah was "Abi" [2 Kings 18:2. 2 Chron. 29:1], but the son was not necessarily Hezekiah), and shall call his name Immanuel (= "God [El] with us". Most codices give it as two words).
15 Curds (see Gen.18:8. Deut. 32:14, &c.) and honey shall he eat, up to the time of his knowing (i.e. the prophecy shall come to pass while still a babe. See v.16) to refuse the evil, and choose the good (see 1:29).
16 For before (this was the sign to Ahaz and all present. Cp. the further sign in 8:4) the sucking child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the sol that you abhor (or vex) shall be forsaken because of both her kings. (So it came to pass 2 years later. Cp. 2 Kings 15:30; 16:9. See note on 1:4. Both kings, i.e. Pekah and Rezin [v.1])
17 the Lord shall bring upon you, and upon your people, and upon thy father's house, days that have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah; even the king of Assyria (this was fulfilled in 2 Kings 16:7, and 2 Chron. 28:19,20).
F r¹ 18. Fly and Bee.
s¹ 19. Destination.
r² 20-. Razor.
s² -20. Destination.
r³ 21. Cow and Sheep.
s³ 22. Destination.
r4 23,24. Briers and thorns.
s4 25. Destination.18 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall hiss for the fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
19 And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys, and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all the thorn bushes, and upon all the pastures.
20 In the same day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired (by Ahaz himself), namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the
head, and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard.
21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a man shall nourish a young cow, and two sheep (i.e. no longer a land of olive and oil, but a poor pasturage. Cp. Jer. 39:10);
22 And it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk that they shall give he shall eat butter (not because of the number of the cattle, but on account of the fewness of the people): for butter and honey shall every one eat that is left in the midst of the land (not corn and wine and oil).
23 And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings (= shekels: i.e. as rent. Cp. Song 8:11), it shall even be for briers and thorns.
24 With arrows and with bows shall men come to that place; because all the land shall become briers and thorns.
25 And on all hills that should be dug (but were to go out of cultivation) with the mattock, there will not come to that place for fear of briers and thorns (i.e. venture to walk without weapons [v.24], where you wanted to plow): but it shall be for the letting loose (or driving forth) of oxen, and for the trampling down of lesser cattle.”